State University of NEW YORK College at Old Westbury


Although my interests [1972] had already moved toward a lightweight sheet metal vocabulary, one belated project in monolithic concrete is worth mentioning. This was the SUNY College in Old Westbury, Long Island (above), done in collaboration with Victor Christ-Janer and Alexander Kouzmanoff. The architectural idea here was that of a concrete "hill town" an accretion of many habitable enclosures as though they had grown together casually over time. Except for fire or medical emergencies, only narrow pedestrian ways led in and out-small bridges, steps and courtyards quite like those we know in Greece or medieval Italy.


Academic buildings were organized at the hilltop - what might be called the public town plaza - with dormitory quarters cascading down the slopes-of three sides. The program called for a library, an auditorium, and many study rooms, but no departments of specialized knowledge. Simple study centers appeared on the roofs of academic buildings. This proximity allowed a program of study to draw upon any number of classrooms or offices necessary for their temporary use. Inevitably the architectural organization developed out of these academic processes. The beauty of this college derives from how directly academic pursuits were accommodated to life on this hill.   -  John M Johansen

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HILL TOWN COLLEGE CAMPUS, LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK

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